Author 



^^*o^ 




o 

21 

o 



Title 



^ ** s 



..J. 



Imprint. 



.M 



18 — 47872-2 •PO 



a 



REPRINT OF A LE'n K R 



BY 



Rev. Luke v. McCabe, D. D. 

w 



SHOWING 

The True Cause of the Destruction 
of the "Maine" 

February 15, 1898 



PHILADELPHIA 

1911 
MARTIN I. J. GRIFFIN 

PUBLISHER 

1935 N. Eleventh St. 




Gifli 
AUG Ig-,. 



/ 






PREFATORY NOTE. 

OvERHRooK, June 28, I'^II. 
Dear Mr. Gkifkin : 

I am pleased to learn from your note that you wish to rcpul)lish my old 
article on the " Maine,' and willingly comply with your request for a copy. 
I think it well, however, to prefix a little prefatory note in order to make my 
view more generally intelligible. 

It should be remembered that the "Maine" was originally designed and 
built for a cruiser. It was only after her construction was nearly complete 
that she was changed into a battleship. Afterwards when she was finished 
according to the new designs, it was found that they did not work out as 
expected ; and a part of her armament had to be moved further back in order 
to balance the weight of her powerful ram and keep her head above water. 
The mechanical principle involved in this operation is well exemplified in the 
familiar play of see-saw. The greater weight on each end, and the farther 
apart, the greater the strain, and consequent danger of breaking, of the board 
or pole. In the case of the " Maine," the greater downward pressure in the 
bow and towards the centre and rear, in conjunction with the upward pressure 
of the water acting as a support or fulcrum in the space intervening caused 
a tension and strain greater than had been calculated for. This strain she 
proved herself strong enough to withstand successfully for over two years ; 
but it was all the time weakening her power of resistance and finally produced 
the catastrophe. This was due, therefore, to no explosion of gun-powder or 
other combustible from the inside, and still less from the outside, of the 
vessel. Of the two main explosions so-called, which have been testified to, 
the first I considered to consist simply in the breaking of the keel, caused by 
the inevitable operation of natural forces as already stated: and the second, 
to be the consequent breaking in two and tearing apart of the whole of the 
ship's superstructure. 

I would call attention especially to the extracts from the testimony of 
Chief Engineer Howell, Paymaster Ray, and Lieutenant Jungen given at 
pages 6 and 8 (of the original edition), and particularly to the parts italicized. 

As I am just getting ready to leave on my vacation, I have not time to 
add anything more nor do I think it necessary. The uncovering of the 
wreck and the completion of the operations now going on will, I am confident, 
enable every one who wishes, to test the correctness of the view here put 
forward; for I cannot agree with the statement in a recent interview that 
the problem is impossible of solution and that the secret will never be known. 

j^ Yours sincerely, 

LUKE V. McCABE. 



Note. — The following communication was sent to the Senate 
Committee on Foreign Relations with the accompanying note, on 
Wednesday last. It was also sent to some of the newspapers, but 
so far they have not seen' fit to publish it. It was prepared from a 
comparison of several newspaper reports, or rather, extracts from 
the official report, but I have to-day compared it with the official 
document, and slightly enlarged a few paragraphs. 

L. V. McCabe. 
April II, 1898. 

(Copy.) 

To the Honorable C. K. Davis, 

Chairman Senate Committee on Foreign Relations. 

Sir : I fear that your honorable committee, in its investigation 
of the cause of the Maine disaster, has not considered the probability, 
or even the possibility, of its being due to the cause set forth in the 
enclosed communication. 

I request that you at least have it read and given such attention 
as, in their judgment, it may deserve. 

I regret that I have been unable to send it sooner, but the idea 
did not suggest itself till after a. study of the evidence, which I 
began some days after its publication for the purpose of under- 
standing the precise meaning of a passage occurring in the report 
of the Court of Inquiry and quoted by the President in his message 
on the subject. 

With great respect, your obedient servant, 

Luke V. McCabe. 

THE MAINE DISASTER. 

The true cause of the terrible Maine disaster has not yet been 
ascertained. That it was not due to an internal explosion or to any 
lack of care and discipline on the part of her officers and men is 
absolutely certain; the report of the Court of Inquiry and the 
published testimony establish that much ; but that it was owing to 
the explosion of a submarine mine, causing the partial explosion of 
two or more of her forward magazines is not certain ; it is only an 
inference that appears, indeed, at first sight to follow naturally 
enough from the truth just stated ; yet it is in reality an unwar- 



ranted inference, fi)r it is not the only alternative, an«l a r.ircful and 
impartial readin.c: <>f the evidence leads, I am convinced, to (|uite a 
dilTerent conclnsion. 

In the first place, the reports of the cHvers and all the evidence 
bearinjj;' on the point i^o to show that neither the forward nor the 
other magazines have exploded at all. What, then, caused the 
disaster? The question admits of an easy answer and one that 
appears to satisfy fully all the con<litions of the problem. 

The principal facts respcctinfj the presmt appearance and con- 
dition of the wreck, as ascertained from the divers' report and from 
the inspection of the parts now above or near the surface of the 
water, may be briefly stated as follows : The keel of the Maine for 
two-thirds of its length, from the stern to the conninj^^-tower sup- 
ports and central station immediately in front of the forward boilers 
and fire-room, now rests horizontally on the bottom of the harbor.* 
Just about the latter point mentioned it bends, and after describing a 
remarkable curve rises almost perpendicularly to within a few feet 
of the surface of the water. Here at frame i8 the mighty keel 
bends again, and after a sharp curve descends at a very steep slant 
to the bottom, thus forming a sort of large inverted A. The keel 
proper or flat keel is not broken but bent, and no holes have been 
discovered in it. but such as belonged to it originally and now serve 
to identify its different parts. The vertical keel, however, or keel- 
son, as I take it to be. running along over it. and, of course, rising 
with it. is broken at or near the top or highest point reached, at 
frame 17; but this vertical keel was less than one inch thick, and 
though 36 inches high was weakened at the point of fracture by a 
three-inch pipe (internal diameter) that had here passed through it. 
The keel in rising bent also or warped somewhat to starboard, as 
the top of the inverted A formed by it does not stand in a straight 
fore-and-aft line with its other parts. The bottom of the ship, 
which is normally a little over six feet above the plane of the keel, 
is in this section bent and raised in the same general direction as the 
latter, the inside plating on the port side at frame 17 appearing 
four feet above water and the outside forming another immense 
inverted A, as it is styled, but in reality having a sort of diamond 
or rhomboid shape, since the divers have found that at about 
twentv feet or more under water fore and aft parts of the bottom 



* From another report it appears to be " sloping gently upwards." 



originally sixty feet apart now approach each other within a few 
inches. It is to be noticed that this immense plating runs con- 
tinuously up and down, apparently without a break, and keeps at 
least generally its proper relative position with respect to the keel. 

It is difficult to conceive an external or any other explosion 
producing such conditions ; but we know that the Maine " had a 
tendency to go down by the head." These are the exact words of 
Naval Constructor Bowles, of the Brooklyn navy yard, as given by 
the New York Sim of February 23 last, in the interview printed on 
page. 2; and at the time she was launched I recollect reading in the 
newspapers that she stuck her nose in the water, but it was hoped 
that her armament could be so arranged as to remedy this defect. 
To have this efifect her forward part had, of course, to be com- 
paratively lightened and her center of gravity moved further back 
than was at first intended. Even after this readjustment it was 
considered desirable to empty her forward coal bunkers first for 
the purpose of lightening her in that region, as the immense weight 
of her terrible ram or ram-bow, as it is technically called, still tended 
to draw her head downwards. " These pockets had to be emptied 
before the coal in the bunkers could be got at ; but Mr. Bowles 
says that as the Maine had a tendency to go down by the head, it 
was the custom to empty these pockets and the bunkers beside this 
magazine" (the forward lo-inch magazine) " among the first." 
Description of the Maine from Mr. Bowles' interview in New 
York Sim just referred to. 

What an immense strain this arrangement must have caused 
to the comparatively light portion of her structure intervening 
between the ram and the forward boilers ! A strain increased by 
the consumption of every ton of coal taken from her forward 
bunkers. True, her strong frame and powerful * keel were able 
to stand the strain for years ; but it must have been constantly 
exerting its force, and the power of resistance gradually and im- 
perceptibly diminishing, it could only have been a question of time 
when the crash would come. 

At last the crash did come, and just about halfway between 
the bow and the forward boilers, immediately in front of the 
foremast, the mighty keel itself gave way, and, following the 



* Powerful indeed for a cruiser, but not enough so for a battleship, if she 
was to last for any considerable length of time. 



line of least resistance, ncct-ssarily fdsc and hent like a fishing rod, 
tearinj:^ with it and foroin.rj- up the ship's sides, heams, bulkheads, 
decks, and everythiiii,^ else in its patii. till the fore-and-aft parts of 
the forward section humped to^vthcr and the strain was relicvcH 
by the bow striking' bottom and the after part crushinL,'- down and 
sinking. 

We can now uiKJerstand wh\' the edges of the breaks anfl 
cracks in the plates present so torn and jagged an appearance, the 
wrinkling and buckling of the vertical keel, decks, &c.. and the 
peculiar character of the dull, mutlled. deafening sound or m.-ir first 
heard, as well as the facts testified to by the spectators on board the 
City of JVasJiiiigton, which was only 300 feet off to port and astern. 

Let me quote some pertinent passages from the mass of testi- 
mony given before the Court of Tni|uiry. 

Captain Sigsbee. who at the time of the disaster was in the 
cabin, near the end of the vessel, says: 

"It was a bursting, rending, or crashing sound or roar of 
immense volume, largely metallic in character. It was succeeded 
by a metallic sound, probably of falling debris, a trembling and 
lurching motion of the vessel, then an impression of subsidence, 
attended by an eclipse of the electric lights and intense darkness 
within the cabin." * * * (Senate Document Xo. 207. p. 15.) 

Lieutenant HoLNrAN" describes the sound he heard as consisting 
of " a low rumbling — comparatively speaking, a low and heavy 
rumbling — followed by a heavy booming explosion." 

Lieutenant Blow testifies : 

" I was writing at the time and heard forward, and apparently 
at some distance — that is to say. well up in the bow. as far as I 
could judge from the sound — an explosion. Instantly the lights 
went out. T rujhed out of my room to see the cause of it. and 
before I could get more than six feet from my room a second and 
much more violent explosion followed. * * * ^[y first im- 
pression was that we had been fired on. and T remember feeling sur- 
prised that it shouM have been by such a heavy gim. When the 
second explosion occurred I recognized the fact that the ship was 
sinking and had been blown up. * * * 

" Q- Will you please describe your sensation of the first shock 
a little more fully? 

" A. The first shock was not a verv severe one. although it was 
sufficient to put all of the lights out. It impressed me as sounding, 
as nearlv as I can recollect, like a lo-inch gim fired close aboard. 



8 

My recollection is that I was surprised that they should fire on us 
with such larg'e .guns so close aboard. 

" O. Suppose you had heard no report in connection with this, 
what would you have supposed — what was the shock like ? 

" A. It was a dull concussion, not like the shock of a rapid- 
firing gun or a 6-inch gun. It was longer and deeper in tone, and 
also with more of a shake. 

" 0. Did the first explosion, or whatever it was, list the ship 
any? 

" A. I think not." 

Chief Engineer Howell testified : 

" I was suddenlv startled by an unusual shock. There was then 
a continued series of convulsions, and a noise like the tearincr of the 
ship to pieces, then a tremendous crash, then apparently the sound 
of falling debris. Then the ship felt as if it was wavering and 
unsteadv of the deck. I noticed no list of the ship until after this 
series of shocks." 

Pavmaster Ray said: " My first impression, my first shock you 
might sav. was a sort of an upheaval. My impression then was. 
from the downward tendency, that the ship had broken in tivo, and 
that she was sinking." 

Private Anthony, the orderly on duty, was standing on the 
main deck, iust outside the door (of the captain's cabin), on the 
starboard side, when he " first noticed a trembling and buckling of 
the decks, and then this prolonged roar — not a short report, but a 
prolonged roar. * * * At the first shock the ship instantly — 
that is, the quarter deck where I was standing — dipped forward and 
to port. It apparently broke in the middle, surged forward, and 
then canted over to port. 

" O. Canted over to port after the first shock? 

" A. Yes. It was continually settling more to port while T was 
on board. * * * 

" O. Did you see any water with it? 

" A. I did not notice that. sir. I started in the cabin at once." 

Lieutenant Blandin, the watch officer on the deck at the time, 
" saw a flare, but no actual flame. He could not locate definitelv the 
explosion. He saw no water thrown up by the explosion. Within 
a minute after the explosion the forward part of the ship was under 
water. In less than three minutes she was at the bottom. Although 
Tie was impressed by the idea that there were two explosions, he 
could not describe the difiference between them. He noticed no up- 
heaval of the ship." 

Lieutenant Hoop was on the deck at the time of the explosion. 
■" The first shock," he said. " felt and sounded like an explosion 



inidtT water. Vhc second explosion carried the whole starboarcl 
side of the forward deck up into the air, and he saw after that an 
immense mass of foaniinj;" water, wreckaj^e. and jj^roanin^ men. 
* * * The first (explosion) produced no hij^ wave, but just a 
mass of foaminjj;' water." 

Captain Ti;.\si).\li-:, of the llritish bark Dcza, testified: 

" Q. When you first saw this thing- was there a large batch of 
solid flame? 

" A. Xo. ; I didn't see any flame whatever. 

" Q. You are sure you reached the deck in time to see the 
large explosion? 

" A. I w^as on dock in time to see everything. * * * 

" Q. How nuich of a wave was thrown over in your direction? 

" A. There didn't seem to be much of a wave with us, but there 
was a decided movement of the vessel shortly afterwards. * * * 

" O. Did you see any dead fish around the bay ? 

" A. I never saw any ; no, sir. 

" Q. Have you ever heard that fish leave this harbor at night 
and go outside? 

" A. I never heard any remark about that. I have seen a good 
many fish here, but they were very small fish — just spluttering about 
on the top of the water." * * "■■' 

Captain Stevens, of the City of Washington: "Heard a dull, 
mufiled explosion and commotion, like as though it were under 
water, followed instantly by a terrific explosion. * * * 

" O. Did you feel any trembling of your own ship at either of 
the explosions? 

" A. The last one I did. but the first one I did not. Everything 
shook. * * * My first impression was, when I heard this noise. 
that it was a gun or a salute, but then changed instantly." 

SiGMUxn RoTSCHiLD, a passenger on the C/7y of JJ^ashingtoii. 
said : 

" The noise of a shot attracted his attention to the Maine, and 
he saw her hoiv rise up out of the w^ater, follozced closely by the 
terrific explosion. * * * jj-j jggs than a minute her bow had 
disappeared." 

I would call special attention to the two following passages. 
The first is from the testimony of Lieutenant Jungex (Official 
Document, p. 132) : 

" It was not an explosion. It was a dull, deafening roar, fol- 
lowed immediately by a tremendous crash, and it seemed as though 
the zi'hole ship zcas falling to pieces." 



lO 

The other is from the examination of Captain Sigsbee: 

" Q. Do you think that the forward six-inch magazine blew up ? 

" A. I do not think so. I cannot find reason to suppose so. 
One man, at least, was blown out of the forward superstructure into 
the water. It is more than probable that he would have been blown 
to atoms if the magazine had exploded." 

It will be remarked that this opinion of the captain was subse- 
quently fully borne out by the condition of the shells and powder- 
tanks found by the divers, the powder itself having apparently been 
dissolved by the water and converted into mud. 

In this connection I may appropriately quote a paragraph from 
a prominent Philadelphia newspaper. The Record ( of this morning's 
issue, April ii) : 

" It will be recalled by those whose memories are even moder- 
ately retentive that Captain Sigsbee, in his testimony before the 
Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, which was printed in all 
the newspapers, absolutely declined to express any opinion, when 
asked who was responsible for the destruction of his ship. The 
story, widely published yesterday and vouched for by a member of 
the committee, to the effect that Captain Sigsbee had sworn that the 
Maine was blown up by a mine connected by wire either from the 
shore or from the Alphonso XII, was therefore a monstrous and 
malignant falsehood. The fellow who started this mischievous and 
designedly inflammatory rumor ought to be publicly whipped." 

Yet this is but one of the many falsehoods that have been circu- 
lated in regard to the whole lamentable affair. For instance, no 
evidence whatever was brought before the Court of Inquiry for the 
report that windows were broken and houses shaken in Havana by 
the shock occasioned by the destruction of the Maine. 

I do not think it necessary to enlarge here on the facts proved 
by the evidence quoted, and by more that might be quoted, that no 
jet of water was thrown up, no big wave produced, and no dead 
fish found in the harbor in order to prove the falsity of the inference 
that because there was no internal explosion, therefore there must 
have been an external one. What to my mind is decisive is the 
ascertained position and condition of the keel and of the bottom 
plating, which. I am persuaded, could be produced by no explosion, 
external or otherwise. What has been called the center of impact 
should have been called the center of least resistance. 

The only conclusion, from all the established facts and the pub- 
lished evidence in the case, that is at all warranted is, I am con- 



II 

vinccd, that the destruction of the Maine was cause<l by ncilher an 
internal nor an external explosion, but was due to her forward part 
breaking in two by reason of defective construction and the strain 
resulting from the disproportionate weight of her rani. 

That her officers have not thought of this, but have attributed 
it to a supposed submarine mine, is not to be wondered at, when we 
consider the tension to which their minds have been subjected and 
the prepossessions which naturally suggested such an explanation, 
especially as the real cause was one which could not have come 
under their observation. Something of the force of these preposses- 
sions we can understand when we find an officer supposing that they 
had been fired on without a moment's notice, and at once rushing 
to his quarters — that is, to the station assigned him in case of battle. 
" Mv first impression was that we had been fired on. * * * 
My impulse had been at first to go to my quarters, but at the second 
explosion I abandoned all thought of this and realized that it was 
a question of whether I could reach the deck or not before the 
ship sank." 

It is a satisfaction to find that the supposed enemies proved to 
be friends, and to read in Mr. Rotschild's testimony that " the boats 
of the Spanish warship Alphonso XII were prompt to go to the 
rescue and were aided by the search-lights." 

The real cause seems never to have occurred to the court or 
others as even a possible one, and accordingly no expert or specialist 
was examined with particular reference to the points now brought 
forward. 

I am confident that if this matter is properly brought to the 
notice of the public the honor and conscience of the country will 
demand that the Maine disaster shall be further investigated with 
the aid of specialists in mathematical and mechanical science, its 
true cause ascertained, and the responsibility placed where it 
properly belongs. 

L. V. McCabe. 
OvERBROOK, Pa., April 4. 



